Now presenting, the mysterious book with the missing title-page!

In the very unfortunate absence of Colin from Sunday school today, Stalwart Scott was there steadily behind the reins of the lesson. After shocking us by being first in the class room instead of the last (due to the weekly battle of fighting his way through the crowds outside the ward library) he showed us the second half the video, about the young Italian priest who found the nameless book without a title page. I'll admit it was a while before I could remember the first half of the video though... This second half showed what happened as this man read the account of the Saviour's visit to the Americas, as he prayed about it and received a testimony of it. He began using this book in his sermons to the congregation at church, and soon fell into trouble with the higher church leaders, who wanted him to burn this strange book. But because of his testimony of the truthfulness of this book he refused to burn it, saying in doing so he would offend God. He continued to study and share this book with anyone who would listen, and after many years was able to find the origin of this book and the church it was published by, and much later finally be baptised as an old (well grey, at least) man into the true church by one holding the authority of God. This man is definately an example to us all of standing firm in his faith and enduring to the end. We can also learn from this that Heavenly knows his children and will lead the earnest seeker to the truth, and the power of the Book of Mormon to those who read it and pray with a sincere heart and real intent. Thanks Scott for organising this uplifting lesson for us.

Dancing clowns, shiatsu massage and the life-cycle of the African dung-beetle...

The heat has finally hit (or gently bumped) Hobart and it's time for a bit of summer fun! So here's your chance to exercise some major creativity and originality...

If you could do anything, absolutely ANYTHING, for a ysa activity, realistic or purely imaginative, what would it be? It could involve unicorns, vikings, the Tardis, albino mountain goats or even a ukelele. It could be set in Hobart, the West Indies, Siberia, the Amazon rainforests, Antarctica or the outer orbit of Jupitor. It could be with the ward, the stake, the world, or the inhabitants of Kolob.

Get those creative juices flowing and post your ideas in the comments below. Prizes for the most inventive post and the best realistic idea. You can post as many ideas as you like!

RADelaide 2008

The journey over sea and land was a small price to pay (ok so it actually cost a bit) for Rosny-ites Fi, Bek and Maz to attend the 2008/09 Adelaide YSA convention! With a good sized bunch from the Great Island State, the Tasmanians were a much noticed presence. Though apparently not enough to compete in the tug-of-war. Next time, next time... Some of the fun times packed into the intense and sleep-deprived 6 days include lots of dances, including a ball at the HILTON HOTEL!! Mmm they had good food there too. Beach day...spent mostly at a park near the beach because the sun took forever to come out. Explore Adelaide day, workshops, testimony meeting, service projects such as attending the temple or giving blood (I much prefer the first one!), fancy dress New Years dance, and talent show. Definately lots of fun and worth going to! For those who attended, what was your favourite part, or some funny stories that happened?

Cornerstones, Keystones and Capstones

A new year, a new Sunday School topic, the possibilities are endless! This year we will be studying the Doctrine and Covenants and began the year with a bit of an intro. We were going to watch a video that Colin brought, but after several seconds of staring at the box decided to wait until next week when we can have the video player. Instead we watched the circle of Zarahemla (which will be needing a new name this year) transformed into the capstone of the Salt Lake temple upon which the statue of the angel Moroni stands (nice link between BoM and D&C don't you think?). The church and gospel of Christ have been likened to architectural features. For example, in Ephesians we read that Jesus Christ is the cornerstone, or the first stone laid. We have had Joseph Smith declare that the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion, or the stone which supports the structure. But another one I hadn't heard before, was the Doctrine and Covenants being likened to the capstone. The capstone of the Salt Lake temple was ceremoniously laid as the last stone of the building structure to be put in place. Likewise, in this dispensation the revelations now recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants gave the final pieces needed to fully restore Christ's church upon the earth. We look forward to an exciting year of learning more about these revelations.